WESTERN Ky. (7/12/13) – There are two types of outdoorsmen in the state of Kentucky. Which one are you?

First, and the most common, is the hobby outdoorsman. This is your average hunter/fishermen… and that’s it. They hunt during hunting season, fish during the warm seasons, and it ends there. There is nothing wrong with this type of outdoorsmen, but there is a major difference in this and the hardcore outdoorsman.

The hardcore outdoorsman is a rare breed. This is the type of person that would survive and do extremely well if civilization, as we know it today, crashed. This person does not need a car, a computer, or even a gun and fishing rod to survive. They don’t need electricity and they don’t require money to feed themselves and their family. The average outdoorsman (hobbyist) might argue that he or she could survive in such a situation as well, but answer the following questions and you will know if you are a hardcore outdoorsman…

• Can you get a fish without a fishing pole, a net, or any other manufactured item?• Can you catch a squirrel, rabbit, or even a deer without a gun?• Can you make your own bow and arrow without machines to craft it with?• Can you make a knife out of a deer leg?• Can you start a fire without a match or a lighter?

If you answered no to these questions, then you are a hobby outdoorsman. Again, there is nothing wrong with this, but you might want to take your passion for the outdoors to the next step and become a hardcore outdoorsman. Learning the skills and crafts that would have made all those questions positive for you can actually be quite fun.

Being able to do all these outdoor activities requires you to do such things as be able to make traps from ropes, trees, and even design and create certain items, such as a spear pole with a sharp tip. The tip can either be sculpted onto the spear, from the same wood, or you can choose other more effective items for the spearhead, such as a flint arrowhead or a bone spike. The flint arrowhead is the result of a craft called flintknapping. This craft goes back to the beginning of time, as this was what natives would originally use as tips for spears, arrows, and they would even make knife blades out of them. Flint is also what you would use to get your fire started.

Bones are another good option. You can use rough stones to grind down bones into many items, such as the aforementioned knife blades. Bones can also be crafted into spikes to be used in a number of ways.

One must understand that there wasn’t always a local Department Store where you could buy all your hunting and fishing goods. There wasn’t always companies that manufactured them. There was a time when we used what the good Lord gave us. We used rocks, trees, and other natural items. There were no manufactured goods in the beginning. We took what nature provided, and we used it to survive.

If you want to brag that you are a true outdoorsman, prove it by showing that you can survive without anything made by machines. To quote the legendary country music star, Hank Williams JR, A Country Boy Can Survive!